Hey, psst, over here! I hear you like detective stories with gay leads? Well, can I interest you in the Donald Strachey movies?
Ahem. So, the other day I said with three murder mystery BLs airing, maybe it was a good time to try to entice people to watch the Donald Strachey films, so that's what I'm here to do! And, look, they're kind of a different flavour, but I'll take any opportunity I can to try to get people to watch these, okay?
They're a series of four films made between 2005 and 2008, starring Chad Allen as Donald Strachey, a gay private detective, who lives with his husband, Timmy, a lawyer. Timmy pretty much always ends up involved in Donald's cases making for both fun and dramatic moments.
In order of release, we have:
Shock to the System, 2006
On the Other Hand, Death 2008
They're all adapted from the series of novels by Richard Stevenson and, in my ever so humble opinion, are very fun noir/hardboiled homages with great central performances, interesting plots and a lot of heart
Plus, Donald and Timmy are the cutest! Their relationship is truly lovely and anchors all four films
As I said, these films were based on four of the sixteen Donald Strachey novels written by Richard Stevenson between 1981 and 2019. I've read the first three (Death Trick, On the Other Hand, Death and Ice Blues) and enjoyed them a lot! They're really different from the films, though.
Both the books and films are set contemporary to when they were written/made, which gives them very different political backdrops. (For example, two of the three books I read were set during the height of the AIDS Crisis vs the films where AIDS is mentioned but doesn’t colour the narrative.)
This also changes the nuances of the relationship between Donald and Timmy as well as some of their characterisation, but the biggest impact is how differently some of the cases play out to adjust to the times. Personally, I enjoyed both, but I did read the books long after seeing the films! There's probably an interesting post in the differences and what they say about the political climate in both eras, but I think that's a job for someone else.
The cases in each film mostly deal with some aspect of the queer community and the subject matter does get pretty heavy (homophobia, hate crimes, conversion therapy, among others), but I personally found the way they were dealt with was fine, though ymmv. Of course, they're essentially hardboiled detective stories, and heavy topics are kind of part and parcel of the genre. (Though maybe lighter fare than a lot of the hardboiled stuff I've read)
And there is definitely hope and levity and some sweetness to balance it out.
The cases are compelling, and, while I personally find detective shows and films to be comfort media, it's the relationship between Donald and Timothy that brings me back time and again!
Because of the genre, we get to see a stable, loving, established couple where the conflict of the story happens outside of their relationship, which is nice! (Not that I don't like the opposite, either.) But Timmy is also integral, in my opinion, not just as support for Donald, as spouses/partners often are in detective media, but as a character in his own right. Of all the detective films and shows I've watched (hardboiled, cosy, or in between), this feels pretty rare outside of BLs. (Unless the couple are an investigative team. Sidenote: still pining for that gay Hart to Hart remake that never happened!)
And did I mention they're adorable??
All four films are available on Tubi in Australia. Not sure about elsewhere! I had found them on YouTube but not sure if they're still available from whoever uploaded them there :(
Oh, and I'd also recommend the books! Along with two other hardboiled-esque mystery novel series with a gay protagonist I've enjoyed: the Dave Brandstetter series by Joseph Hansen (the main character is an insurance investigator) and the Henry Rios novels by Michael Nava (the main character is an ex-attorney or lawyer)
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